Monthly Archives: September 2011

We initially intended to go to Tandoori Kona in Richmond as Arkensen wanted butter chicken for lunch. Unfortunately, Kona was not opened for lunch on Sunday. While in the area, I also noticed that Red Mirchi had moved a few doors away to a smaller shop lot. The original location of Red Mirchi is taken over by a Vietnamese Restaurant called Pho Boi which is under renovation.

So, we had no choice but cross the bridge to Vancouver to look for Indian restaurant for Arkensen.We were on Main St and Tandoori Raj Restaurant was the first Indian restaurant we came across.

It was 1:30PM when we arrived and we were the only customers at that time. Tandoori Raj Restaurant does serve liquor. The decorations is simple and the restaurant is spacious.

We ordered Papadam to snack on while waiting for our main dishes. Each papadam costs 0.60. I was a little disappointed as the papadam did not comes with any dipping sauce. The papadam by itself is quite salty.

We noticed that Indian restaurants generally serve water in nice glasses unlike some Chinese restaurants use plastic cups.

Our first main dish is called the King’s Special Biryani. The dish costs $10.95. It is … Continue reading →

I was able to find time for the canning drop-in again last week. For the month of September, the canning drop-in is conducted at the Minoru Seniors Center, in the kitchen of the cafeteria. The canning drop-in runs on Tuesday, from 5PM to 7PM for the month of August and September.

For last week’s canning drop-in, Karen DW of Your Secret Chef prepared Apple Ginger Chutney for sale at the Applepalooza event which will take place on Oct 2nd in the Apple Orchard at the south end of Gilbert Road, from 10AM to 2PM. It’s a celebration about apple. This is the second annual festival and it includes tasting and sales of apples, baked goods with apples and apple ginger chutney. The price of a jar of 250ml homemade organic apple ginger chutney is only $5 which is a bargain. There is also a lunch by chef Ian Lai ($5), face painting and crafts and wonderful music in the orchard.

This delicious condiment can be made with in-season apples now, or with non-seasonal ingredients any time of the year. It is delicious served with meats like chicken and grilled fish or combined with sour cream or cream cheese in appetizer toppings or sauces.

The apples are home grown and it’s perfectly alright to use the imperfect apples for canning.

I can’t believe it had been a week already since I landed again in Beijing. Time sure flies, especially when it been so busy everyday.

The flight on Air China was rather uncomfortable. I had the window seat but there is nothing to see out the window. The entire flight is in darkness! The flight left Vancouver on schedule at 3:00 AM and arrived a little earlier than 5:45 AM in Beijing. Hehehe … sound like a 3 hour flight huh?

That flight was 11 hours long. I did not sleep much because the seat were so uncomfortable. The entertainment system was so archaic that I don’t even want to watch any movies at all. When you come over to visit me, remember NOT to fly Air China!

The food was just so-so. You get a choice of either Chinese or western. I went with Chinese. Quite edible but I did not even finish half of it. Anyway, it was just too much food for a 11 hour flight.

The Beijing Capital International Airport was rather quiet when I landed. Which was a good thing because I was kind of worried because I had so much luggage and had to jostle with the people who don’t respect lines. Good thing there was NO lines at all.

When you get to Beijing, here is what you do. Follow everyone to the immigration counter and line up behind the line that says “Foreigners”. The immigration officers here are much friendlier, so no worries there. They don’t talk much, nor did they ask me any questions. You then get on a train which brings you to another terminal where you pick up your luggage (if you have any checked in). And then you go out to through the green lane of customs. Easy. I will wait for you outside the customs.

This is the service apartment I am staying for the next few months. You will … Continue reading →

The Richmond Community Kitchen resumed operation in September. The first kitchen took place at the Gilmore Park Church.

Minoo prepared 3 recipes for this first kitchen. The main dish is a healthier version of meat loaf with the incorporation of zucchini. Zucchini is a summer squash. Zucchini has a delicate flavour and requires little cooking cooking time. You can steam, boil, grill, bake, barbecue or fry it.

Here are some of recipes using zucchini that we had made in the community kitchens:

I had been flying here and there for the last little while … everywhere but China. LOL! It’s too complicated to explain. There were a number of things that took a little lot longer than everyone anticipated.

But I am finally in the YVR airport. With all my bags packed and all.

One of the things that made things took so long was that I had problems with … Continue reading →

Kao’s Family Restaurant has been on our list of places to try for a while but never get to it. I suggested this restaurant because Peggy L is from Taiwan and she can recommends some popular Taiwanese dishes to us.

Kao’s Family Restaurant has been in business for 10 years as the owner told us. This restaurant is tucked in a corner in the strip mall where Bei Jiang Restaurant is. The restaurant has minimalistic setting, just a few tables and chairs. It was pretty quiet on a weekday afternoon. Oh, parking is a big problem in this strip mall.

We left all the ordering to Peggy L. For starter, we had the Pig’s Hoof with Jelly for $4.75. It is served with a garlicky vinegarish dipping sauce which has a kick to it, i.e. a little spicy.

The Pig’s Hoof with Jelly is made with pigs feet that are boiled until the skin falls off the bones. Only the skin is used while … Continue reading →